I was invited to attend an event at Bon Accord and St Nicholas shopping centres in Aberdeen on Saturday and so, for the first time in a couple of years, I ventured North in the name of fashion!
Bon Accord really made an effort to showcase the shops within the shopping centre and encourage would-be window shoppers to spend some money on the gorgeous new spring trends. Coast, Lipsy, Karen Millen, River Island, Hobbs, Next and Topshop were just some of the great British high-street stores that took part and it was definitely a worthwhile event in terms of spoiling shoppers and injecting a bit of fun into what was otherwise a rather dull Saturday afternoon. Weather included.
With the economy suffering and shoppers not really shopping much at all, Bon Accord really made the effort to engage with shoppers and let them know the key pieces to invest in for the summer. Having seen major brands going into administration over the past couple of years, I think it is important for brands and businesses to pay attention to what their customers want, and to act upon this. Bon Accord obviously understand that their customers like to window shop, as well as spree, and so they gave them something to watch while encouraging them to spend their money at the same time. The stylist for the event, Ian Tod, really did a great job of showing off the trends in a wearable manner and gave some good advice on how to wear different looks according to body shape. For example, he highly recommend that the Topshop hotpants remain on the runway unless one has legs of similar proportions to the models! My favourite looks were the pastel dresses at Dorothy Perkins, the ethno-chic at Pepperberry and the vibrant colour blocking at Coast.
Above: Ian Tod with the models.
Above: Dorothy Perkins
Above: Pepperberry
Above: Coast
Above: backstage, the rails of high street looks for the shows caught my eye.
After a tough afternoon of watching the hourly runway shows and shopping in Next, Dorothy Perkins and Laura Ashley, I was more than ready for a make-up demonstration by Dior and a couple of delicious non-alcoholic cocktails from Orchid and 10 Dollar Shake. A skinny latte from Costa and an issue of Vogue later, I was back in Broughty Ferry unpacking my latest fashion finds.
Above: Cocktails by 10 Dollar Shake and Orchid
Above: Makeovers by Dior at the Pamper Pods
With thanks to the lovely Sarah at Beattie.
